My Approach / About Me

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I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist working with individuals, couples and families throughout the Napa and Sonoma Valleys.

Therapy is an opportunity for clients to learn to communicate in deeper and more meaningful ways. This process creates stronger emotional bonds which lead to greater individual and relational satisfaction.

I work with individuals on a wide variety of issues such as depression, anxiety, relationship issues, stage of life transitions, trauma, and grief and loss. I especially enjoy working with women with mid-life concerns.

Working with couples and families, I focus on all stages of relationship including premarital counseling, couples and families looking for deeper connection or in crisis and those considering or in the process of separating. 

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In therapy, I help clients develop a deepened awareness of who they are- their values, beliefs, strengths and blind spots- and understand how these qualities impact their day to day choices and responses. Through this process clients develop greater self-compassion and self-acceptance for themselves and all that they are. This self-knowledge gives them the personal agency and freedom to create a life aligned with their deepest nature.

Using an integrative approach, I pull from multiple orientations including: Attachment Theory, modern Psychodynamic Theory, Family Systems Theories, Mindfulness techniques, Somatic Therapy, Positive Psychology, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), a form of therapy that combines Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) with Eastern meditation, and CBT.

Asking for support can be difficult, but it is also the first step on your path toward a better life. In my work as a therapist, it is truly an honor, and one I do not take lightly, to sit with people in times of healing, growth and change. I am here to support you.

My Background and Credentials:   

I have lived on both the East and the West Coasts and Napa has been my home since 2001. I worked in the home design business for many years,  before returning to school to pursue my graduate education in 2009. 

While my formal education and training have certainly been instrumental in my professional development, my most valuable lessons have come from my 35- year marriage and the parenting of my own three children, now 32, 30 and 26. It is in these relationships that I have loved, been challenged, healed and grown most deeply. Having participated in extensive personal therapy, I know and appreciate first-hand how healing and transformative the therapeutic relationship and process can be.

In my free time, I enjoy reading, traveling, hiking with my dog, exercising/yoga, and spending time with my family and friends.

Training:

  • Certified EMDR Therapist and Consultant

  • Emotionally Focused Therapy, (EFT) Advanced training

  • Gottman Institute Couples Therapy, Levels 1 & 2

  • Couples Institute Developmental Model Training

  • Trauma Resiliency Method

  • Internal Family Systems, Richard Schwartz

  • Trauma and Memory, Bessel Van der Kolk

  • Mindfulness Schools, Fundamentals and Educators Essentials

Experience:

  • Private Practice, Napa

  • Supervisor for Associates Therapist

  • Mentis, Mental Health Therapist, Napa

  • Calistoga Junior and Senior High School, Mental Health Therapist, Calistoga

  • CareNetwork, Mental Health Therapist, Napa

  • Napa Unified School District, Napa High School, Mental Health Therapist, Napa

  • Family Services of Marin- Mental Health Therapist, San Rafael

  • Sutter Health at Home- Grief and Bereavement Counselor, Santa Rosa

Licensing and Education:

  • Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist # 97708

  • Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor #4805

  • Certified Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapist and Consultant

  • Certified Emotionally Focused Therapist (EFT)

  • Sonoma State University, Master of Arts in Counseling

  • Sonoma State University, Bachelors of Arts Liberal Studies

  • University of California at Santa Cruz, Psychology

Memberships and Affiliations:

  • California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists, Marin Chapter

  • EMDRIA (EMDR International Association) full member

  • International Center for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy (ICEEFT)